Diocese seeks facilitators to help prevent child sexual abuse

The Office of Child and Youth Protection of the Paterson Diocese is looking for volunteer facilitators to conduct ongoing awareness sessions to help employees, volunteers, and parents of the diocese prevent child sexual abuse.

Using VIRTUS program materials provided by the diocese, facilitators show two 35-minute videos with information on child protection during each awareness session. Then, they help participants — faithful who work with or minister to children or vulnerable people — through a workbook on the subject.

Facilitators also encourage discussion among the participants by reviewing materials and answering questions from a provided workbook. Participants learn about the context and reality of abuse, acquire tools to prevent it, and get inspired to become part of the solution.

Sessions last three hours and are held in the facilitator's parish, neighboring parish, or another location. Twenty to 60 people attend the sessions. The facilitator might spend additional time securing VIRTUS materials, setting up for the presentation, traveling to and from the location, and answering questions.

“Facilitators help safeguard childhoods and create a better and safer world for children and the vulnerable,” said Eric Wilsusen, director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection, which he called a “vital ministry for our diocese to help create and maintain safe ministries and help people learn ways to advocate for and protect children, the vulnerable, and survivors.”

A facilitator should have strong verbal and presentation skills. A facilitator should be engaging enough so that people feel they can speak freely, have patience for questions and concerns, have empathy for the participants and their issues, and be able to keep a steady, professional demeanor throughout the session.

“We look for someone who can create a conversation with others and has a passion for protecting children,” Wilsusen said.

A facilitator must know how to run a television, DVR, or laptop computer and how to use the Internet to access their continued training. They must understand and speak fluent English. A person who can speak other languages can also be an excellent facilitator.

The number of sessions each facilitator will conduct each year depends on the number of facilitators and the number of participants in the diocese.

For the first year, training to become a facilitator requires a day of training or about six hours. More preparation time is needed before his or her first session in addition to nine hours of continued training online annually.

For more information or to volunteer to be a facilitator, call Eric Wilsusen at 973-777-8818 ext. 257 or email him at [email protected]